


Verständnis und Vergebung

by Summer_Dusk



Category: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, I'm sorry I had to do this to Niall, bit of game story rewrite, don't worry about the title the story is still in English, lots of guilt, lots of sadness, the character death tag obviously refers to him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-18 02:44:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15475797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Summer_Dusk/pseuds/Summer_Dusk
Summary: AU in which Nia was too afraid to act and ended up not saving Niall.





	Verständnis und Vergebung

**Author's Note:**

> I first had the idea when I wrote "Okay", this scenario was mentioned in a piece of dialogue and I thought "hey, that could be interesting" - it wasn't until I felt terrible thanks to stress and uni where I felt like actually writing this scenario, lmao.
> 
> I wrote the meaning of the title in the author's notes at the end. 
> 
> Also: big thanks to Ikasury who helped me come up with a satisfying ending and who beta'ed this! :D

Their guestroom lay in absolute silence.  
Nia sat on one of the beds, legs hugged close to her body, and hid her face in shame and sadness.  
She could have saved him. _Should_ have saved him.

Why? Why had she refused to act? Why had she been so afraid? Too afraid to save a life, again. First her family, then Vandham and now the emperor… But why, why did _his_ death hurt so much?

The scene was still painfully clear before her mind’s eye: the Ardainian emperor who had run out of the safety of his blade’s barrier to knock the remote out of Bana’s wing, followed by the explosion which had deafened her ears and still echoed in her mind. Niall’s body just lying there… and Mòrag, poor Mòrag who had rushed to her little brother’s side, cradling him, hoping he was still alive somehow.

Nia would never forget the look in Mòrag’s brown eyes as she had watched Aegaeon return to his core crystal, which had been the exact moment she had realized what this meant for the boy in her arms _._ There had been no anger or sadness in them – no, her very soul had been torn apart in that very moment. Nia had only caught a glimpse, yet the sight had broken her heart.

Mòrag had cried after that; sobbed. Had held her brother close to her body in a desperate attempt to protect him from something that had already taken its toll.

Nia should have gone to her. She should have just… If she had not cared about…!  
If the others hadn’t been there…! The queen, her retainers… Damn it. If it had been just them alone, then she could have… No, she should have anyway… but she had been too afraid. She had the ability to turn things around, yet she had refused to act. It was her fault.

“I – I could’ve…!”, she mumbled, her voice trembling.

Someone put their arms around her. “It’s not your fault.”, Mythra’s voice whispered gently. Her body felt strangely warm, something Nia would’ve expected from Pyra.

Nia tensed. Mythra knew her secret, but she did not know the _extent_ of it. Had no idea what Nia was really capable of. What kind of blade she was… Nia shook her head in dismay, unable to reply to that. Mythra tightened her hold of the Gormotti driver and it felt so wrong. Mythra was not supposed to be the compassionate one. Was not supposed to sound softer than Pyra.

Nia gulped hard, trying to suppress the incoming tears. She jerked up when somebody knocked on the door. The Gormotti blinked what little tears had been in her eyes away and only had a moment to catch the surprise in the faces of her other companions.

It was Brighid who entered, a solemn look on her face.

Immediately, Rex was on his feet. “Brighid…!” There was so much he wanted to ask, but found himself unable to. “How… how is she?”, he managed to get out.

Brighid only shook her head. “There are still a lot of things to take care of regarding his majesty’s… passing.”, she only said, almost unable to say the words. She looked towards the bed Nia and Mythra sat and approached them.

Nia’s eyes widened when Brighid stopped right in front of her. What did she want? Did she know? Had she somehow found out?

“Lady Mòrag wants to see you.”, Brighid only told her.

Nia could only stare in disbelief. “Why?”, was the only response that came to her mind. There was no way they knew, right? Sickness seeped into her stomach and Nia didn’t feel strong enough to stand up.

“It’s a very delicate matter. Let’s just say we need yours and Dromarch’s expertise.”

This left Nia even more confused. Why would Mòrag call her, of all people, in a time like this? Nia had no business with the official matters, and if Mòrag needed a friend… why not everyone else too? She looked towards Dromarch who had risen from the floor and walked up to the flame blade. His blue eyes wandered back to his driver, watching her knowingly, waiting for her decision.

Nia felt heavy. She did not want to go. How was she supposed to face Mòrag after what she had done? Or rather, what she had _not_ done?

She forced herself to stand up and was glad that her legs were still able to carry her. She took one last look back towards Rex, Mythra, Zeke, Pandoria, Tora and Poppi, everyone was sitting on a different bed or chair and everyone was watching them leave, their expressions blank.

Nia felt as if she was about to face the gallows.

Brighid led them back to the Ardainian titanship, where the fateful explosion had gone off. How much time had passed since then? An hour, two? For Nia it had already felt like an eternity. The sun was setting now in Indol, heavy clouds hung in the sky. Nia inhaled the fresh air, tried to calm herself down and she had thought it was working, until they reached the Ardainian titanship. They passed by the hangar, and made their way upwards until they found themselves in front of the infirmary.

Brighid gave them both a look Nia couldn’t read and then she opened the door and entered. Not knowing what to expect, Nia and Dromarch just followed her in.

Mòrag was sitting by one of the beds, her back facing Brighid, Nia and Dromarch as they entered. Nia bit her lower lip when she saw her: the once proud posture was gone. She was slouching – Mòrag never slouched. Had never hunched her back or hung her head low. And yet there she was, offering a sight which Nia had never even thought of imagining. She did not want to look towards the bed, knowing exactly who lay there.

Brighid approached her driver and carefully placed her hands on Mòrag’s shoulders. She squeezed her driver, leaning a bit close, maybe even wanting to hug her. It was a delicate scene, and it felt wrong for Nia to be able to watch this. Mòrag raised her head in response, turning towards Brighid, but not fully and gave her a nod. She stood up then, trying to regain somewhat of her composure by straightening her back, but it didn’t help much. Maybe it was the air around them, or maybe she was just too tired to bother, but her body still seemed limp despite the effort.

Mòrag then turned around to face Nia and Dromarch, her expression blank, the brown eyes filled with grief. She had been crying. Her eyes were still red from it and Nia could see the traces of tears the Special Inquisitor had not bothered to wipe away.  
  
“Mòrag…” What was Nia supposed to say? It hurt to see her like this.

“Thank you for coming.”, Mòrag said to the both of them.

“Of course, Lady Mòrag.”, Dromarch replied. “What is it that you wanted of us?”

Mòrag lowered her gaze. “His majesty’s funeral…”, she began and immediately she halted for a moment to collect herself. “It will take place with an open casket, but I just…” Her eyes wandered to the side, trying and not trying to look at the bed behind her. “I can’t bear to see him like this.”

“I understand.” Dromarch’s features saddened. “Forgive me if I ask so frankly, but wouldn’t something like this be the undertaker’s task?”

“It would.”, Mòrag admitted. “It’s just…” She paused again and her lips curved very subtly into a sad smile. “It is childish, but I don’t want a stranger to mess around with my brother’s… body.” Her features contorted and she looked ready to cry again.

Brighid was once more at her side and placed a hand on her driver’s upper arm. She didn’t say anything, but her concerned expression gave away that there was too much she wanted to say. The blade looked towards Nia and Dromarch. “She trusts you, and your healing abilities are far above average… You may very well be the only one capable of such a task…”, she further explained.

Nia lowered her gaze, unable to look them both in the eyes. “I – I see…”, she said and she knew that it was her turn now to approach the bed and do what they had asked of her, but she had frozen in place. She did not want to see the corpse. Did not want to see the consequences of her actions – seeing Mòrag and even Brighid broken like that was more than enough.

“If you would be so kind…”, Brighid said and gestured towards the bed. This wasn’t a request though, but her subtle way of telling Nia to do what she had come for.

Nia gulped and nodded and finally walked past them and approached the bed were the emperor’s corpse lay.

When she finally stood by the bedside, the stench of burned flesh reached her nose. Nia felt the sickness rising in her stomach and looking at Niall’s body did not help her with that.

He had suffered severe burns of different degrees, most of it had eaten through his skin, revealing white and brown tissue beneath the epidermis. His eyes were closed, at least they looked as if, because his eyelids seemed to have melted together. His once dark blue hair was burned to a crisp. The boy barely looked human anymore. How had Mòrag been able to stomach this sight for so long? Nia was about to vomit. The stench, the burned skin and exposed tissue… She brought her hands to her mouth, not sure if she wanted to spit her guts out or supress a sob.

This was her fault.

She could have healed him, could have brought him back to life when he had been just at death’s border… but now, now no traces of ether were left in his body. Sure, she could apply her healing arts and channel Dromarch’s ether onto his skin and regenerate what hadn’t been burned away, but it would still not make him look like before. Better maybe, but still not really himself.

Her Flesh Eater powers could fix him, she suddenly thought, even with his cells dead she could force them to divide and grow and restore even the tissue that had been burned away. She hated herself for it. What use were those powers to her _now_? The real damage had already been done. And it was irreversible now. All this because she had been too afraid… Now she asked herself what it was that she had been so afraid of. Being called a cannibal? A monster? Being shunned by her friends?

She looked back towards Mòrag and Brighid, who were watching her silently. Mòrag’s expression was empty, while Brighid seemed watchful, protective even. She reminded Nia of a mother and suddenly she did not want to think that Brighid may have been more than a mere blade to the two siblings.

Whatever she had feared, Nia began to believe that it would not have been as bad as the here and now. “Dromarch…”, she called him weakly while she grabbed the Twin Rings to use the Healing Halo art.

Only the superficial wounds healed. With Niall dead there was no way to grow new tissue with ordinary healing arts. His skin was a mosaic of different pink and red skin tones now, no ugly white and brown tissue showing, blisters were gone – but whatever had been charred black stayed this way. If she could at least heal his face properly, then he wouldn’t have to look so dreadfully alien.

She gulped, still feeling nauseous at the sight. What had she done? She had let Mòrag’s precious little brother die and now, now Mòrag had to remember him a corpse, defaced, and Nia was sure that this sight would haunt the Special Inquisitor in her dreams forever.

Tears pricked at the corners of Nia’s eyes and before she knew it, some of her own ether had seeped into the Twin Rings. The glowing ether turned from light blue into a brilliant white, causing her to gasp and snap out of her thoughts. She stopped the healing immediately, afraid of turning into her true form and risk getting found out. With heavy breaths she looked towards the result of her unwanted use of her Flesh Eater power.

“Nia?”, Mòrag asked, having noticed her agitation.

It took Nia a few long moments before she reacted to being called. She was shaking now and her hands clutched even tighter onto her weapons. When she finally turned around, her face was twisted from trying to supress a sob. “I’m so sorry, Mòrag…!”, she said, her voice trembling. “I could’ve…! I should’ve…!”

Mòrag approached her and looked at Niall and then back to Nia. “There is a limit to what healing arts can do.”, she said and smiled comfortingly at her. Why was _she_ the one smiling? Comforting? Nia couldn’t believe her eyes. This was all so wrong. “But you managed to… his face… that is more than enough. Thank you.”

Thank you.  
These were the words that got her. Nia broke down on the floor and began to sob.

“My lady!” Immediately, Dromarch was at her side and she buried her face into his fur.

“Nia…!” The Gormotti could feel Mòrag’s hand at her back, but the gesture did not comfort her. It was a hot, burning sensation. Another manifestation of her guilt scorching its way to her heart, eating away at her the longer Mòrag’s hand rested on her body. She did not deserve to be treated with this much sympathy. She had betrayed Mòrag, had let her down when she had needed her the most – and the Ardainian had no idea.

_I should have saved him.  
_ _I **could** have saved him._

How was she ever going to live with those ugly truths carved painfully into her heart?

 

* * *

 

The state funeral had begun at Hardhaigh Palace, in a room that may as well have been a little chapel. It was usually reserved for official matters, mostly the coronation of the new emperor… or funerals.

Countless people in their dress uniforms were seated on the pews, all of high military rank: officers, generals – the grand marshal himself. Rex, as the driver of the Aegis and Zeke, as crown prince of Tantal, were allowed to sit in the front rows. They were of distinction too after all. Nia and Tora on the other hand were standing somewhere far off by the wall, watching the procedure from afar.

She knew that this hadn’t been Mòrag’s choice. This was the emperor’s funeral after all, and she knew that some people would have hated to see her and Tora – nobodies – up front with all the high ranked officials. It was just politics. She didn’t care. Mòrag knew they were there and that they had chosen to delay their trip to Tantal to be able to be here with her. That was all that mattered.

Mòrag stood there, in her formal dress uniform which showcased all her order insignias and a bunch of medals whose meaning Nia didn’t know. Medals of valour maybe? She was Special Inquisitor after all and it had never occurred before to Nia, but surely she had earned that title rightfully by fighting her way to the top. A life full of drills and battles… and for what? To protect the only family she had. And now said family was no more. She had been Niall’s shield, but what good was a shield with no one to protect anymore?

Yet, Mòrag’s expression was stoic. She accepted the condolences from her military peers, shook their hands, replied to their words… Nia had only seen her cry on that fateful day his majesty had died in front of them. After that Mòrag had not lost her composure again. She had neither smiled nor frowned. Still, she had not appeared apathetic either, as if… as if she knew exactly how to turn her emotions off and do what had to be done.

Nia’s heart grew heavy. Of course Mòrag knew. She distinctly remembered the incident in which they had found a corpse at the hot springs and how Mòrag had volunteered to relay the news to the victim’s husband; how she had said that she was used to these kind of things. What a life she must have led…

She sniffled, bringing Tora’s attention to her.

“Nia okay?”, the Nopon asked with a worried frown.

“Yes, I’m fine, Tora.”, she replied with a husky voice. What right did she have to cry over Mòrag’s fate anyway?

He watched her sadly, but didn’t pry any further.

The public had been given the opportunity to bid farewell to their young emperor by being allowed to attend this first part of the ceremony, before the honour guard would take the casket to the graveyard. A lot of them had brought flowers which they rested solemnly on a designated altar.   
They did not talk to Mòrag. Maybe they were told to do so to keep the procedure short.

A couple of hours passed. When the last people finished paying their respects the eulogies started. First off was the army chaplain leading the service, then senator Roderich, speaking on behalf of the senate and at last the Grand Marshall. All of them spoke of Niall’s life as a young emperor, of the burden he bore so valiantly despite being just a boy, of the positive changes he had already brought to the empire and his intention of keeping peace at all cost and protecting everyone, even if that had meant sacrificing his own life.

Listening to Roderich made Nia angry. Wasn’t it Roderich himself who had screwed Niall over and went behind his back, almost starting a war in Temperantia? Hadn’t this been the very reason for the summit at which he had been assassinated? Why the bloody hell was that jerk even _allowed_ to be up there?

Nia looked towards Mòrag, who listened to everything without showing any sign of emotion. Was she angry too on the inside?

“Stupid politics…!”, she hissed under her breath. “Bloody hypocrites…!” Was that the reason why Mòrag had decided to not give an eulogy? Because it wasn’t worth pouring her feelings into a speech that would fall on deaf ears?

Again, Tora noticed and looked at her, but he saw the anger in her eyes and decided to keep silent once more.

When the eulogies were spoken the chaplain spoke a prayer for the deceased, may he find peace by the Architect’s side, and one for the attendees to help them find the strength they needed to overcome this tragedy. Then, the casket was closed and draped in the flag of the Empire, which was red and sported the golden Ardainian emblem in its centre.

One by one the honour guard took its place by the coffin’s sides, ready to carry it towards the graveyard: Two people in the back, two at the middle and one up front. At first, Nia wondered why it was an uneven number of only five, but then Mòrag walked up to the front and took up the last empty space.

Tora lowered his gaze. “Friend Mòrag really strong to carry coffin of own brother.”

Dromarch nodded. “In military funerals this would be the task of the honour guard while the members of the family follow the procession. She must’ve actively chosen to do this.”

“But why? Tora would cry if Tora had to do such a thing. Would be too hard to keep straight face.”

Dromarch’s blue eyes wandered to the stoic young woman. “I wouldn’t know. Maybe it’s her way of saying goodbye to him personally. A state funeral doesn’t leave much room for privacy after all.”

Tora’s eyes watered up and he only nodded in response. Nia kept quiet, pressing her lips to a thin line to suppress a cry. Her whole body was shaking.

Mòrag did not look around for her friends even once. She just stared straight forward, her mind ever so focused on the next steps she had to make. She and the others carried the casket outside and only when they left the room the people slowly started to follow behind.

The sun shone harshly on their faces as they put the coffin down in front of the excavated grave. The six then proceeded to fold the flag in a specific sequence until the hilt of the sword, which divided the emblem into for equal parts, was left visible. Mòrag took the flag in her possession and stared at it for a few moments. Then she handed it over to Brighid and helped lower the casket to the ground.

“Does the folding of the flag mean something specific?”, Rex asked.

Zeke nodded. “I’m not too sure about Mor Ardain’s specifics, but since it was folded to show the hilt, which connects the four symbols on the emblem, this is probably meant to unite the four properties they stand for.”

“I see…”

Cannon shots were fired behind them from the top of the palace’s walls.

One, two, three… they ended up being twenty-one in total. Each round was fired separately with the next one following only after the sound of the one before had subsided.

“Why they fire guns?”, Poppi asked.

“It’s a salute: Twenty-one guns are fired in honour of the head of state.”, Dromarch explained. “Lower ranked recipients would receive less, depending on their position.”

Poppi nodded, falling into deep thought after this.

The last honour to Niall’s name was a bugle-call, played by a lone soldier a few peds afar from the gravesite. All around them soldiers saluted synchronous as the melody played. Nia got goose bumps.

Mòrag was standing alone in front of her brother’s grave, with her back turned towards them, and saluted perfectly. Her arm did not tremble. She seemed strong. Stoic. And yet, Nia was sure that there was a storm raging inside of her. This sight, together with the melancholy tune made Nia’s heart grow heavy.

When the melody ended she knew it was over.

Niall was gone forever now.

 

* * *

 

It was late at dusk when Nia sought out Mòrag in her chambers. She knocked thrice on the door, wondering if Mòrag would even answer to someone after such a long day.

“Come in.”, the Special Inquisitor’s voice said. Still no indication of any emotion in it.

Nia gulped and entered, her heart started to beat faster now. Her instincts told her to run away, but she had to do this. She had to tell Mòrag the truth. She owed her at least that much.

Mòrag stood in front of a window and looked outside. She had her hands behind her back as per usual and her posture seemed proper as always.

The sight reminded Nia of herself. She had also stood in front of her room’s window after her sister’s funeral. Everything had felt numb that day. Unreal. She had stared outside, trying to wallow in her grief… The sun had shone brightly and the green leaves had swayed softly in the wind… Oh, how much she had wished it had rained that day. Instead the warmth and light had felt like a mockery to her feelings.

“Mòrag?”, she called out quietly.

Hearing her name, Mòrag turned away from her window and faced her visitor. “Nia…”, she said and her voice sounded incredibly tired. She closed her eyes for a moment. “What brings you to me?”

Nia approached her and from up close she could see the shadows of grief in Mòrag’s light brown eyes. “I… wanted to tell you something.”, she began and the weight in her chest grew heavier.

Mòrag nodded. “Go ahead.”

Nia gulped and lowered her gaze. “I’m sorry.”

Mòrag seemed surprised. “What are you apologizing for?”

Nia’s vision blurred and she quickly blinked the tears away. “Your brother. I… I could have saved him.” She closed her eyes out of fear of Mòrag’s reaction. Would she hit her? Yell? Just glare? Tell her she hated her? She did not want any of this, but she couldn’t bear the guilt anymore.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, squeezing her softly, and she dared open her eyes again. Mòrag smiled sadly at her. “You’re the greatest healer I’ve ever seen, Nia, but even you can’t bring back people from the dead. No one can. So please, don’t beat yourself up over that.”

Nia stared at her, unable to reply. No. This was not what she had meant.  
 _I’m a Flesh Eater. I can do things ordinary blades can’t. He had still some life and ether in him after the explosion, if I had acted immediately I would have been able to save him._ These were the things Mòrag did not know and Nia wanted to tell her. She had to make herself clear. She took a deep breath and opened her mouth, but she was unable to speak up again. Her tongue was tied. She was afraid. Terrified even.

If she told Mòrag the truth things would never be the same between them again. Her stomach tightened.

There was so much kindness in Mòrag’s gaze, despite her having lost the only family she had. Where did she find the strength the comfort Nia like this? Surely she would have saved that energy if she knew all the facts. It was wrong to hide the truth, but Nia did not want this gentle gaze to turn hateful and angry.

“Nia, there is also something I want to tell you.”, she said.

Nia closed her mouth again and Mòrag took her hand back. “I wanted to thank you and the others for coming back with me.”

Nia needed a moment to realize what had been said.

“Knowing that each and every one of you was there at the funeral gave me strength.”, Mòrag continued on. “I’m sorry that you and Tora were treated like this, but please know it meant the world to me. I don’t have a lot of trusted allies…”

Nia’s shoulders slouched. “I…” She gulped. There was no way she could get the truth out now. “As if we could have left you just like that.”, she eventually said. “You’re part of the team, Mòrag. And a _friend_ , not just an ally.” Her ears drooped. Was it wrong of her to say such words? Was she no better than that hypocrite Roderich in the end? She didn’t have the heart to break Mòrag’s trust.

Mòrag gave her a little smile.

Nia saw that and wanted to smile back, but she felt paralyzed. She told her brain to smile, but couldn’t tell if her muscles had obeyed.   
“I know you’re not feeling up for anything, but maybe going with us to Tantal will make you feel better. Just… being around friends, yeah?”, she suggested. Maybe, just maybe, if they continued where they had left off, things would start to feel normal after a while. Was it bad that part of Nia hoped that things would be forgotten so easily?

There was a bit of surprise in Mòrag’s gaze before it turned aloof. ”I fear this won’t be possible.”

“What? But why?”

Mòrag examined her for a moment, before she turned her attention towards the window again. There was a moment of silence. “I will be crowned empress the day after tomorrow.”, she announced.

“E-empress?”, Nia repeated, wide-eyed.

“What else did you expect to happen?” Mòrag lowered her gaze. “I’m the last of royal blood and my country is in turmoil. I can’t leave on a journey.”

“I… didn’t think…”, Nia managed to utter. She was too shocked to say anything further. She had been so caught up in her guilt that she hadn’t stopped for a moment to think things through. Of course Mòrag would stay in Mor Ardain after the loss of her brother. Someone had to lead the country after all. It shouldn’t have been such a surprise.

Yet, the reality hit her hard, as if someone had punched her in the guts.  
She shook her head. “No…” She didn’t want this. She didn’t want Mòrag to stay behind, just because she hadn’t acted in Indol. It was not fair. Mòrag shouldn’t have to pay the price for Nia’s inability to act.

Mòrag hadn’t noticed her faint objection. She raised her gaze again and stared with a hardened expression out of the window.

“I fear this is goodbye.”, she said and suddenly, she seemed to stand somewhere far, far away from Nia.

 

* * *

 

 

Elpys was eating away at her.  
  
Her breathing was flat and quick. No matter how many breaths she took or how deep they were, no oxygen whatsoever seemed to reach her lungs. Her vision blurred and the corners of her eyes started to grow dark.  
Would this place turn into her grave, like it had for so many others before her?

She had fallen behind.

Dromarch was by her side, his worried blue eyes wanting to say so many things, but she had shushed him multiple times already and he had stopped his concerned remarks. She had to be strong. This place was dangerous and even if her healing arts where of limited power now, it was better than having none at all. She had to protect her friends. Take care of them. Do, what she hadn’t been able to do for her family or Vandham or Niall…

The glowing particles around them grew denser. It was a beautiful sight. Such an irony that it was these very things that sapped away at her life.

Suddenly, she stumbled over a stone she hadn’t seen and fell onto the dirty ground.  
 _“My lady!”,_ Dromarch’s voice seemed to come from somewhere far away.  
Her ears rang and her vision grew dark.

_When she opened her eyes again, she saw Mòrag’s face looking down at her, an encouraging smile on her lips. “You needn’t worry now, Nia.”, she said and reached a hand out to her._ _Nia raised her own hand weakly and Mòrag grasped it, the touch strong and warm; it was strangely comforting amidst a battle.  
_ _“Yeah, can’t let something like this stop me.”, Nia said with a weak smile and let herself be pulled off the ground.  
_ _Mòrag gave her a confident smirk and then turned her attention back to the enemy._

The memory hurt.

Mòrag had always been the one to help Nia get back on her feet when she had fallen in battle. Had always watched out for her, reached out her hand whenever Nia had needed it and she had always taken hits Nia would have never been able to endure. And she in turn had healed Mòrag’s wounds and made sure she was able to continue to protect them all.  
They had been a good team… Sure, they had had a rough start, but their abilities had complemented each other nicely and after only a short time they had operated as a well-tuned unit. With her by her side Nia had always felt safe.

 _I miss her.  
_ And with that thought a pain occurred in her heart that she had never felt before.

“Nia!”, Rex’s voice called out. She felt him kneel down next to her. “Nia, are you alright?!” He placed his hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes again and saw his worried face.

There was something in his expression she couldn’t read. Worry? Shock? “Are you crying?”, he asked and then she knew that he was taken aback.

She blinked, feeling the tears running down her cheeks. She lifted herself of the ground and shook her head. “Just got some dirt in my eyes.”, she said and wiped said ‘dirt’ away.

“Should we rest up for a while? You look terribly battered.” Azurda, flying next to Rex’s shoulders, suggested.

Nia’s breathing was still flat. “Yeah, may not be the worst idea…”, she agreed. She took a deep breath and stood up again. Rex was by her side, reaching his arms out in case she fell again, but he took them back as soon as she glared at him.

Poppi made a small fire and everyone gathered around it.   
Nia would have expected Zeke to make some kind of stupid comment, maybe suggest to her that she should rest her head in his lap, but no. He actually seemed concerned. Nia hated it. She didn’t want any sympathy. Didn’t deserve any in the first place, because it had been her choice to hide this secret which had cost her so many lives already.

Rex took something out of his bag and handed it to her. “Here, try this.” It was some kind of metal flask.

“What’s this?”

“An air tank.”, he explained with a little smile. “Hold your nose and breathe in through the mouth. It should help against the dizziness.”

She looked at him and then to the air tank. “Heh, is that one of your salvager tricks?”, she smiled a tired smile and did as he told her. To her surprise it helped. It was easier to breathe now and she felt less dizzy. “Cheeky git, why didn’t you say you had this any sooner?” She handed it back to him and he gave her a smirk in response.

“The other salvagers taught this to me when I was just getting started.”, he told her and everyone at the campfire. “I never knew my parents, but those guys always watched out for me like a family.” Remembering the teasing of his colleagues and the horror stories they told him from time to time just to mess with him, his smirk turned into a wide grin. “Sometimes at least.”

Nia eyed him silently while she thought about his words. “Family, huh…” She closed her eyes, remembering the faces of her father and sister. Her sister had been the first person she hadn’t been able to save. Even though this had been basically the only reason for her existence… “I knew my father, but I never learned anything worthwhile from him.”, she said then.

The other’s attention shifted towards her now.

Nia didn’t like thinking about her family, as it reminded her of the past and a life long gone. However, Elpys drained at her life and while she felt better now thanks to Rex’s little trick, she knew that this was only temporary. Who knew? Maybe she would die down here. Something strange tucked at her when she realized this and suddenly she found it sad if she disappeared from this world with no one remembering who she was and who she had been before she had joined Torna. The life she had spent in Echell with her family was part of her and she did not want this part to be forgotten either. After all, it had been a good life most of the time – except for the end.

So Nia told them. About her father, a Gormotti lord, and her sister, who had always been sickly and how she, Nia, had been taught how to be a proper lady.  
The last revelation prompted a surprised reaction from all of them, but Nia just shrugged and went on to explain how her father had spent all of his money and possessions to find a cure for her sister, who over the years got increasingly sicker.

What she did not tell them though, was that she had not been blood-related to them. She did not tell them that she was a blade and that it had been her job to watch over the girl she came to call sister. And she did not tell them either how terribly she had failed in her duty as healing blade. Now she knew that there were some things even blades couldn’t heal, but back then…

It was ironic, as a Flesh Eater she could have saved her sister’s life – but if her sister hadn’t died then she would have never become one in the first place.

Now she had all those incredible healing powers and what had she done with them? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. She had hidden them, together with her existence as Flesh Eater. What else had she been supposed to do though? She had been hunted by the Praetorium for almost ten years, fearing every day for her life and never knowing whether she would see the next sunrise… She had been called an abomination, a cannibal and many other terrible things during that time and those few people she had trusted had ended up selling her out for the bounty that had been on her head. Wasn’t it understandable then that she did not want anyone to know? That she did not trust anyone to stay by her side if they ever found out?

  
She ended her tale quickly by revealing that her sister had died on the streets after her father had sold the mansion.

No one said anything, just looked at her sympathetically. They grew quiet after hearing this unhappy story and the group rested for a little bit longer in silence before they continued on.

 

The further they progressed into Elpys the thicker the mist around them grew. The ether absorbing particles had also grown in numbers and in turn, Nia started to feel worse again. She knew they were close. The bridge they were crossing was a stark indicator that it lead to something special, something _sacred_. The third Aegis sword that would hopefully help them with their mission to save Pyra.

Again, Nia fell behind. She watched her friends’ backs slowly growing smaller with each further step they took and tried to catch up, but her legs felt heavy. Her legs… and her heart.

Her vision blurred again and many different images passed through her mind’s eye:

The look of her driver when he first laid eyes upon her. He had been shocked. But she hadn’t known that this was what his expression had meant when she had first seen it. Only later, when she met his daughter and found out about her sickness and when she grew a bit more and people actually started commenting on their striking similarities, Nia had finally understood.

Her sister’s last smile. She was the only one who had actually seen more in Nia than a blade.  
How peaceful she had looked when she had been put to rest in her coffin.

 _Her life is tied to yours…_  
Her “father’s” words after she had become a Flesh Eater and the look in his eyes. No sadness, no relief. It had been desperation, even after the deed had been done. Desperation and denial.  
Then she saw his corpse lying on the bed.

Vandham, who had died protecting them. Would she have been able to turn the situation around if she had revealed her true form back then? On some days she would tell herself that it wouldn’t have changed a thing: Akhos had disrupted the ether flow in the area. She would have been useless either way. On other days she imagined herself running back to the Olethro ruins and reviving him. But it was only wistful thinking. She couldn’t bring people back from the dead. She could heal deadly wounds, no matter how dire, as long as there was still some sort of life and ether inside the wounded, but the time frame for such a miracle was short. Very short.

Same with Fan la Norne. Jin had been dead set on killing her. Freeing her out of a misery no one had understood. He’d have killed Nia too if she had tried to save Fan. Yet, she sometimes still beat herself up for not having considered to go through with that option.

The last images that passed her mind were of Niall and Mòrag.  
How Mòrag had cradled him in his arms after that fateful explosion.  
His burned face before she accidentally healed it with her Flesh Eater powers…  
Mòrag turning her back towards her as she told her that they would go separate ways now.  
Maybe, if she had somehow sent away all possible witnesses, then she could have healed him without fearing to be found out. She could’ve told Dromarch, make up something on her own…

This was the death that had gotten to her the most and now she finally knew why: because she could have prevented it: there had been no one who had blocked the ether flow in the area, and no one who would’ve killed her if she had commenced healing.   
Niall had died, because she had been too afraid. If she had acted back then, she could have saved him, which was something she couldn’t say for the other cases. And on top of that she had lied to Mòrag. Had not told her the truth and instead had tried to comfort her even.

“Nia?” Suddenly, Rex stood in front of her, looking very concerned.

She snapped out of her thoughts and noticed how she had been hyperventilating.

“Is everything alright?”

Nia just stared at him while she began to control her breathing. Nothing was alright. She might die in this accursed place. She wasn’t ready to. There was still something she wanted to do… something she desperately needed to do. But maybe… maybe she did not deserve a chance to be forgiven. She had made terrible mistakes and choices, things she couldn’t imagine to be granted salvation for. Death… death might be the only way out of this miserable life of hers.

“Do you think that sins can be forgiven easily?”, she suddenly asked him.

He raised an eyebrow and looked very much confused. She could see the question on his face: _What is she talking about?_

Nia lowered her gaze and waved the question away. “Forget it.”

“I don’t know.”, Rex then answered, which prompted her to look at him again. “A sin is something that someone did wrong, right?” He scratched the back of his head in deep thought, looking a bit sheepishly because he knew that this wasn’t exactly the smoothest way to put it. “A mistake of sorts… I mean, not always, because murdering someone or stealing is also a sin, but… I think it depends.”

Nia frowned. “Depends on what?”

Rex shrugged. “Lots of things.” When he saw Nia’s disappointed reaction to his vague answer he frowned and tried to elaborate. “I guess mostly on who you want to be forgiven by.”

She stared at him blankly and suddenly she grimaced. “This isn’t about me.”

Rex looked her in the eyes, this time unfazed by her dismissive behaviour. “Listen, Nia, I don’t know what’s been eating you up ever since we left Indol, but I can tell that you haven’t been well. Not only down here…”, he then said and her golden eyes widened with surprise at those frank words. “Whatever it is, if you can talk to that person or someone else involved in that matter, then there is at least a chance to make amends. Whatever you did, I’m sure you meant no harm.”

She snorted dismissively. “How would you know, ey?”

The boy just smiled. It was a very kind smile. “Because that is not who you are.”, he replied. “You’re a little rough around the edges, yeah, but you’re a good person, Nia.”

She stayed silent after that, looking at the ground as she thought about those words. A good person, huh? Would he still say that if he knew about all her mistakes? Would he even call her a person if he found out that she was a Flesh Eater? Nia smiled wearily. “Rough around the edges, what’s that supposed to mean?”, she asked to distract from the topic at hand.

Rex chuckled. “Come on, Nia.” He gestured towards the others who were almost out of sight and she nodded and together they made their way to the vault of heroes.

 

Down here, in the deepest part of Elpys, was an enormous building that reminded Nia very much of the architecture she had seen in Indol. For some reason, it felt like a mighty grave.

Light found its way from the outside and shone upon some sort of headstone, as if to enhance its importance and sacredness.

The place was empty and it _felt_ empty too, even with their presence, but something bothered Nia. Where was the sword? The surroundings made it almost impossible for anyone to come down here, surely, it must be somewhere.

They ascended the vast stairs and Rex stopped in front of the headstone. No inscription. Maybe it wasn’t even a headstone and just some kind of monument?Shadows began to appear before anyone could open their mouths to discuss this observation.

Rex seemed surprised at first, but he let go of the emotion quite quick and unsheathed Roc’s Dual Scythes. Nia, Tora and Zeke readied their weapons too and then everyone attacked.

The Phantasm’s had no end. For every shadow that dissipated into thin air, at least two more shadows followed in its stead.   
Everyone was growing tired, except for Tora and Poppi who didn’t suffer from the disadvantageous conditions. They fought valiantly, but the duo could only do so much against the vast quantity of enemies.

Nia tried to keep up with healing everyone, while evading and dodging attacks from the shadows. It was hard, and again she could barely breathe. Was this the end? Would they die down here? She saw no way out… Tora and Poppi were surrounded, looking grim and tired. Zeke and Pandoria were put in a corner, too weak to unleash one of their flashy moves. The electric blade hid behind her driver, knees shaking from the exhaustion, barely able to hold herself upright.

Suddenly, one of the Phantasm’s knocked Rex’s weapons out of his hands and another was about to lunge a sword into his heart.

“Rex! NO!”, she yelled and the boy barely dodged, but there was another shadow ready to cut him down. And another. And another. They were surrounded. Even if she revealed her true self – she was just a blade. In a place that drained her powers. She would reveal her secret for nothing…

Her knees shook from the anxiety. No, she had to try, right? All this time she had not acted out of fear and where had that gotten her? She had lost people close to her and had ruined the life of those left behind. She thought about Mòrag, who was the empress of Mor Ardain now – who would’ve been here with them otherwise. Would things have been different if she had been with them? Would she have had noticed something and come up with a smart plan to defeat this foe?

“Argh!”, Rex’s voice tore Nia out of her thoughts.

She looked at him and her eyes widened. One of the shadows had stabbed him. Not through the heart, but it had pierced through his side, maybe hit a kidney. A deadly wound if left untreated.

No. No.  
She couldn’t let him die too.

She heard Tora yelp behind her back. “Masterpon!”, Poppi cried out.

Not her friends too.

“No more!”, she screamed and before she fully realized it she had turned into her blade form for the first time in almost a decade. The light of her transformation repelled the Phantasm’s and gave her friends an opportunity to strike back.

Nia kneeled at Rex’s side and immediately began healing his wound.

He had not fallen unconscious yet and when he saw her true form, the elaborate ears and long hair and _core crystal_ …  
“Y-you are a blade?”, was the only thing he managed to get out.

In any other situation she would have laughed at his flabbergasted face, but she did not feel like laughing. At all. Her heart was racing, even though she had closed his wound without a problem.  
“Watch out!”, Rex cried out and she turned her head around just in time to see Tora push one of the Phantasm’s away.

“This no time for surprising plot twist!” , the Nopon shouted.

Nia blinked and then she stood up, summoning her scimitar in her hands. The weapon felt strangely heavy. “Right…” Her hand was shaking, but she attacked and fought together with her friends. Behind her Rex had stood up again, but he wasn’t moving anymore. Instead he looked blankly into space.

The shadows dissipated into thin smoke without any prompting.  
Only then did Rex stir again. He blinked as if he had awoken from a dream.

“We… we did it.”, Zeke only said and exhaled loudly. He looked at Nia and grinned. “Didn’t know you had an ace up your sleeve.”  
Tora performed a little dance. “We bestest drivers!”

Nia just stared at the ground, her whole body was trembling.

“My lady?” Dromarch was at her side now. “Are you alright?”

She shook her head.  
“If… if I had only done that sooner…!”  
She should have felt relief at the fact that her friends didn’t behave any different than before, that they still looked at her with same eyes…

Instead regret found its way into her heart and she dropped to her knees, sobbing. She should have saved Niall. Her friends wouldn’t have let anyone harm her for being a Flesh Eater, not even in Indol. She had been so afraid that she hadn’t seen even the most obvious things. Now that she had confirmation of their loyalty it was of no use to her anymore.   
She hid her face in her hands. “I’m so sorry, Mòrag…!”, she cried.

“Nia!” Tora, Zeke, Pandoria and Poppi were at her side now, trying to understand why their friend was bawling, but Nia was inconsolable.

None of them felt victorious when the third Aegis sword finally appeared.

 

Back in Fonsett they tried to make sense of everything that had happened. The third Aegis sword had dissolved into dust mere moments after Rex had touched it, but for some reason the boy had still been intent on saving Pyra. There had been a change in his expression… so they decided to trust him.

The only clue they had about her location was the image of a rotten titan near the World Tree. After a while of thinking Dromarch spoke of the Land of Morytha and the cliffs leading into it. He concluded that this must’ve been the location they sought.

“Okay, then… how do we get there?”, Zeke asked the obvious. “I doubt any sailor would be keen on getting that close to the World Tree.”

The rest of the party frowned.  
“Unclepon Umon ship is wreck…”, Tora only said.

“No surprise after that crash landing in Uraya.”, Nia mumbled.

Zeke and Pandoria silently examined the two, picking up the pieces from context, and decided that they didn’t need further explanation.

Rex was in deep thought throughout the whole conversation, arms crossed with a frown on his face. He perked up suddenly, as if an idea had just crossed his mind. “Hey guys, do you think Mòrag could help us?”

The mention of Mòrag made Nia’s stomach churn. “Why’s that?”, she asked.

“She is our friend and empress now. I’m sure she has the resources to lend us a ship and I don’t think she is gonna say no if we explain to her what happened.”, Rex answered.

“That very good idea, Rex-Rex!” Tora was highly enthusiastic.

“We could see how she is doing too, that’s not too bad of an idea, chum.”, Zeke agreed.

Azurda popped out of Rex’s helmet. “I suggest we send a blade ahead of time to request an audience. I imagine it will be difficult for her to find time for us, now that she is empress.”

“Very good point.” Zeke put a hand on his chin while he thought about it. “Any suggestions?”

There was no point in changing their mind. Nia saw no other way either. “It should be someone who can assert themselves, in case those palace guardians are being pricks.”  

“And maybe someone articulate too.”, Azurda added.

Zeke grinned. “How about Dagas?”

Nia snorted. “Yeah, that guy is very assertive.”

“And I’m sure he’d be able to handle royal affairs too.”, Rex agreed.

“But maaaaybe we should send someone else with him in case he… overdoes it.”, Nia thought aloud with a frown.

“Who would be able to keep him in line though?”

“Zenobia?”

Rex frowned. “I don’t think she is made for diplomatic matters…”

“She’d probably just battle her way through…”

“Kora?”, Pandoria then suggested.

Nia gave her a flat stare. “She’d make matters much, much worse.”

This went on for a while. Ursula was suggested for her calm and polite demeanour and her friendly looks, but it was obvious that Dagas would just overshadow her with his pompous attitude. Wulfric, because he’d be unaffected by Dagas’s demeanour, but he was ruled out for his scary looks and the very misunderstanding howls he let out from time to time.

Eventually, the group agreed on Adenine. She had the wits and eloquence for such a task and wouldn’t take shit from Dagas either.  
So Zeke and Nia sent their blades off with this new mission and the group then rested at Corinne’s house, allowing themselves to finally collapse from the exhaustion in Elpys.

Nia didn’t sleep at all that night.

 

* * *

 

She had intended to tell Mòrag the truth immediately. To just stay in her blade form upon entering the palace and answer the obvious questions the empress would have upon seeing her. As opposed to her other friends, Mòrag surely would notice and _know_ what the red blurs in her core crystal meant.

Nia’s courage had left her though when she stood in front of the entrance gate. Very meekly she had looked upwards towards where the throne room was located and decided that it would be better to tell her one on one later on. There were more pressing matters at hand and she didn’t want to risk Mòrag denying them a ship they desperately needed.

She reverted back to her driver form before they entered the palace, earning quizzical looks from the others.

Mòrag stood tall and proud in front of her throne when her friends entered the room. She was wearing a new uniform, the colour scheme still the same as the one from her Special Inquisitor getup, showcasing her medals and the emblem of her country. The armour around her hip and shoulder was also new, more elegant in design now and instead of a hat she wore the same golden laurel crown her brother had always donned. She wore a velvet cape around her shoulders now, its inner surface coloured red while the outside retained the dark blue colour. For some reason it looked very heavy to Nia.

Brighid was standing next to her, advisor and silent protector at the same time.   
Dagas and Adenine were standing with them, awaiting their drivers patiently.

Rex and the others exchanged an unsure glance. Should they bow or maybe kneel down? Their friend was the leader to a whole country now after all.

“Y-your majesty…”, Rex began, very unsure on how to behave.

When Mòrag saw his struggle she gave him a little smile and waved the words away. “There is no need for such formalities. It is just us here.”

Rex nodded, obviously relieved.

Zeke made a mocking little curtsy. “Looking good, Mòrag.”

“I can still have you thrown out if I want to.”, Mòrag replied to his little jest.

Nia suppressed a chuckle. It was amazing how Mòrag seemed to be doing fine. From her demeanour alone no one would have ever expected the tragedy that had befallen her not too long ago. Maybe things would work out alright if she told her the truth.

They sat by the table and Rex and his group started explaining what had happened ever since they had left Mor Ardain: how they arrived in Tantal and of the circumstances in the country, that they met with Zeke’s father, the king, who had them taken prisoner and had wanted to destroy Pyra. How Zeke and Pandoria freed them of their prison and how they saved her together… and the subsequent meeting with Torna who had then taken her away.

They talked for hours, with Mòrag inquiring things further here and there to make sure she got the whole picture, until Rex finally ended the tale with the vision he had seen when he had touched the third Aegis sword. The only thing he did not reveal was Nia’s transformation in Elpys, because she had cut his explanation of the fight against the Phantasm’s short by saying it was no big deal with Tora and Poppi by their side. He had given her a quizzical look, but had not bothered to elaborate any further either. Zeke, Tora and their blades had also known not to intervene. Nia had been devastated after her transformation and she had refused to tell them why.

“A rotten titan in immediate proximity to the World Tree…”, Mòrag recapped, intertwining her fingers while she thought about all she had heard. “The Cliffs of Morytha… There is no doubt about it.”

Dromarch nodded. “I was hoping you would agree, Lady Mòrag.”

“And now you need a ship to get there?”, she continued.

Rex nodded. “I fear any normal pilot would rather not approach such a dangerous place.”

Mòrag lowered her hands and gaze, quietly tapping with her fingers against the table. “Malos has Pyra, and it could be any moment now where he restores his core crystal…”

Brighid also seemed to be in deep thought. “Truly, a dire situation…”

The group fell silent, as there was nothing left to add to those words. Mòrag stopped tapping her fingers when she made a decision. “Very well, I will arrange a ship for you.”

“You’re the best!”, Rex said excitedly.

Mòrag gave him a little smile. “It’s the least I can do…” She seemed somehow tired now.

“Can Mòrag not come with friends?”, Tora asked.

Mòrag’s gaze wandered to him and lingered on his face for a few moments. “I’d love to, Tora, but I have a duty to my country. As empress I can’t just leave Mor Ardain behind.”

“Even though friends fight bad guys?”

She gave him a sad smile and nodded. She glanced towards the throne, ready to say something, but she shook her head subtly and let it rest. There was a wistful glint in her eyes now. Nia took notice of all that and her ears flattened – she could imagine very well what words were weighing on Mòrag’s mind.

When all was said and done Mòrag offered them to stay in the palace overnight, so that they could leave from its docks early in the next morning. The party agreed and when everyone had retreated to their respective rooms, Nia took the opportunity to seek Mòrag out in her private quarters.

Once again she stood in front of the heavy wooden door, heart beating fast and fighting down the urge to run away. Why did she even want to tell Mòrag the truth? To feel better about herself? To discard her guilt? Was that fair, if the price was to tear down what little bit of peace Mòrag had tried to find ever since her brother’s death? Hadn’t she suffered enough already?

Maybe Nia should just own up to her mistake and suffer in silence and leave Mòrag out of this… She felt guilty. Even more so because Mòrag did not know the truth and still trusted her. Maybe she should just try and live with this feeling. It was a punishment for her mistake after all. Mòrag would gain nothing from her confession, just suffer more…

She gave in with a sigh and knocked. Deep in her heart she knew that she couldn’t live with this feeling anymore. She had tried for so long, ever since her sister had passed away first, but the result had been that she had closed her heart out of fear and guilt and this had caused more harm than good in the end.

“Come in.”, Mòrag’s voice said and Nia entered.

The empress was sitting at her desk, her posture perfect as always, and filed paperwork.   
“Still working this late?”, Nia asked and tried to smile.

Mòrag first finished whatever she was writing before she put her pen down and answered: “The workload never gets less, it’s just the due dates that change.” She looked towards Nia and her expression was different from when they were talking in the throne room. Tired. There was a shadow behind her brown eyes Nia hadn’t noticed before. Or maybe, which Mòrag hadn’t allowed herself to show earlier. “It’s a good distraction before going to bed.”

“Distraction, huh…” Nia lowered her gaze guiltily. “From… your own thoughts?”

“Yes.”, Mòrag smiled sadly. “It’s been half a month already and I still think about him daily. Whenever my mind gets a moment to wander, it always goes back to him…”, she stopped abruptly and changed the topic. “What brings you to me?”

Nia felt very small beneath Mòrag’s gaze. “Remember last time we talked here…?”, she began and her heart raced.

Sensing the Gormotti’s agitation, Mòrag stood up from her desk and walked to her friend. “Are you still feeling guilty about not being able to save him?”, she inquired.

Nia tried to calm down and took a deep breath. She only nodded.

“I already told you, Nia. No one can bring back the dead.”, Mòrag said and rested a hand on the smaller woman’s upper arm. “You must know that too, so why is this still eating away at you?”

“Because…” Nia raised her gaze, her lower lip quivering as if she was about to cry. She gulped again, closed her eyes and transformed into her blade form.

The light blinded Mòrag for a second and she instinctively made a step back. When she opened her eyes again she needed a moment to process that it was still Nia who stood in front of her. She examined the Gormotti turned blade from head to toe with wide eyes, the shock and surprise clearly showing on her face.

Eventually, her light brown eyes settled on the blue and red core crystal and there was something in her expression now that Nia couldn’t read.

“You are a… Flesh Eater.”

Nia nodded. “Figured you’d know.”

“They were created way back in Judicium, Nia are you…?”

The blade shook her head. “No, my circumstances are… different.”, she tried to explain. “I had a Gormotti driver, but he died about ten years ago.”

There were so many questions on Mòrag’s mind and Nia could tell all of them: How did you become a Flesh Eater? Why did you hide it from everyone? Why are you telling me this now? She decided to cut the explanations short.

“You asked me why I still feel guilty about Niall.”, she began and averted her gaze. “I – I’m sure you are aware of the fact that some Flesh Eaters have special powers…” Her stomach churned. “I am a healing blade… and when I became a Flesh Eater…” She gulped and tried to meet Mòrag’s gaze once again. “He didn’t die immediately after that explosion, even with Aegaeon returning to his core crystal… There was still time, if I had acted… I…”, she contorted her face, trying hard to keep her emotions at bay. “I’m so sorry.”

Mòrag’s expression was blank. “You… you mean to tell me that you could have saved him…?”

Nia’s ears drooped and her posture went limp. She didn’t have the heart to speak the obvious answer aloud.

She had expected Mòrag to get angry, hate her, yell, blame her for Niall’s death… but the reaction stayed out. Mòrag only turned her back towards Nia and slowly paced towards the window.

“Mòrag…?”, Nia called out meekly. Why wasn’t she saying something? _Anything_. Anything to give her an indication of how the Ardainian was feeling. Was she shaking? Or was that just Nia’s imagination? “If –if I could turn back time…” Nia didn’t know what to say or do.

“Leave.”

The word was but a whisper, yet it cut through the air and pierced through Nia’s heart like a sharp dagger.  
“Please, I was afraid…! I didn’t mean to… –  I _wanted_ to…!” Nia made a step forward, trying to reach out to the empress with a shaking hand.

Before Nia could touch her, Mòrag turned around.   
Her brown eyes were full of hate now, a burning fury Nia had never seen before. She winced and took her hand back.

“Get out.” 

Again, the words were clear and carried so much more wrath than a shout could have ever conveyed. Her calm posture stood in a stark contrast with her gaze. It was so much worse than if she had just yelled at or hit Nia.

Words were of no use anymore. There was nothing Nia could say to calm her down or make things right again.

With a heavy heart she turned around and left. When Nia closed the door behind her back she allowed the tears to freely stream down her face.

She didn’t know for how long she stayed at the door – or why. Maybe she had hoped for Mòrag to leave her quarters so that they could talk again. Or that the Ardainian heard her cry and realized how sorry Nia felt about everything and forgive her.

Nothing happened though.

“Nia?” Only when Brighid stood in front of her, Nia snapped out of everything and quickly wiped her tears away.

Brighid examined the blade, clearly taking notice of her former teammate’s new appearance. She didn’t say anything and her face did not give away any of her thoughts either. Even though Nia’s Flesh Eater core crystal must have invoked some kind of thought or emotion in the flame blade.

“Sorry, I’m in your way aren’t I…”, Nia said when she couldn’t stand the examination any longer. She left without looking at Brighid.

The Jewel of the Empire watched her go until she was out of sight. She brought a hand towards her heart. “Lady Mòrag…” If Nia’s behaviour was anything to go by, she could imagine very well in what state she would find her driver.

 

Mòrag’s thoughts were still spinning when the door opened again. Nia… Nia was a blade, and not only that, she was a healer – a successfully created _Flesh Eater_ who would have had the power to save Niall’s life. But she hadn’t. She had _let_ him die and for what reason? What in the world had her justify this course of action?  
 _“You’re part of the team, Mòrag. And a friend, not just an ally.”_ And then she had had the nerve to call her a friend after the funeral of the very person whose life she had forfeited.

Quiet steps were approaching her.  
“I told you…!” She turned around angrily and when she saw Brighid she halted mid-sentence.

Her blade hesitated for a second. Brighid never hesitated. This observation caused Mòrag to take a deep breath and to try to calm down again.  
“What is it, Brighid?”, she inquired, her tone coming out sharper than she had intended to.

Brighid turned her head towards the door and then back to her driver. “I came to inform you about tomorrow’s schedule… but I have a feeling that there are more pressing matters on your mind now.”

Mòrag took another breath and placed her hands behind her back. “It’s alright, go on.” Maybe hearing about mundane things would help her.

Brighid shook her head. “Please don’t lie to me, Lady Mòrag. Nia was crying in front of the door and there was clearly a red-tainted core crystal on her chest. Whatever happened between the two of you it is not by any means ‘alright’.”

Perceptive as always.  
Mòrag averted her gaze and scowled. “That… that _abomination_ just confessed to me that she let Niall die.”

The shock of hearing her driver saying such awful words about a friend was clearly visible on Brighid’s face, despite keeping her eyes closed. “How… how can you call her that?”

“Because that’s what she is: a freak of nature, something that shouldn’t exist.”, Mòrag explained coldly. “How can _you_ defend her after what she did?” She clenched her hands behind her back to keep them from shaking.

“Because she wasn’t the one who killed him.”, Brighid stated flatly and approached her driver.

“Niall could have still been alive if she hadn’t been so selfish!”, Mòrag shouted and took a step forward to meet her blade. Her hands were by her sides now, clenched into fists.

“Did you ever stop to think that she might have been too afraid?” Brighid was frowning now, but she stood proud and unafraid. Was she defending Nia because she was a fellow blade?

“Afraid of _what_ , Brighid?” Mòrag slammed one of her fists against the wall. “She stood by idly even though she had the power to change things. She watched me break down and did nothing…” There was an unhappy smile on Mòrag’s face now. “She must have enjoyed the sight. That’s why she came back and tore the wound open once again by telling me the truth –“

Suddenly Brighid slapped her driver’s face, hard.   
“Maybe she was afraid of being called an abomination by the very people she trusted.”, she said and her voice was subtly shaking with anger. “How can you believe any of the words you just spouted? I still remember her breaking down in the infirmary after treating Niall’s body. Was that the behaviour of someone who enjoyed any of this?”

Mòrag just stared blankly at her blade, part of her still trying to process that she had been just slapped. The sudden hit had stopped all her thoughts at once.

“It’s terrible.”, Brighid continued and the anger was gone from her voice. “Knowing that he could have still been with us…” Brighid placed a hand on her own upper arm. “But blaming Nia is not going to bring him back. You know as well as I do that it was Bana who killed him, and not her.”

Mòrag’s face contorted after hearing her trusted blade’s words. “It hurts…”, she admitted with an uncharacteristically high-pitched voice.

Brighid tried to smile, but it was difficult because her lips had begun to quiver. “I know.” She took her driver into her arms and embraced her tightly.

Hot tears streamed down Mòrag’s cheeks. “I miss him.”, she managed to utter before the first sobs came.

“I know…”, Brighid replied gently. “Me too.” She rubbed Mòrag’s back and let her driver cry on her shoulder. Lady Mòrag had been so strong after the funeral; she had immediately turned her attention to the things she had needed to do in order to ensure her country’s stability. She had not mourned her little brother properly, had tried to push the emotions and the sinking feeling of loneliness away with her duty instead – sometimes even to a point where she’d busy herself with paperwork until the early hours of dawn…

But now, now she finally let out the emotions she had bottled up for so long and Brighid was grateful for that.

She stayed with her driver until morning arose and the last tears had finally dried up. 

 

* * *

 

_Malos and Jin were too strong. Nia and the others were struggling to keep up with their abilities, while Dromarch was at Pyra’s side, ready to defend her lifeless body. Nia tried her best to use her restoring powers to oppose Malos’s destructiveness, that way her friends could take his weapon on without destroying their own._

_When Jin froze everything around them to absolute zero she had been rendered powerless from one moment to the next.  
_ _Malos attacked her then and she had barely been able to deflect his sword with her own, until he beat it out of her hands and she fell onto the ground from the impact._

_Horror was written on her face. That was it. He had her now. She would die in this place and with her all the things she had left unresolved in this world. Malos raised his sword for one last strike…_

_“Nia!” A familiar voice called out and she couldn’t believe her ears._

_Before she could process it, Mòrag had thrown herself in front of Malos, her whipswords keeping his Monado at bay. Mòrag’s eyes met hers for a moment and Nia did not know how or why, but she knew then that Mòrag had come to their aid._

Nia woke up in Morytha. Alone.  
  
“Where…?”  
  
The place was dark and eerie… and desolated. She tried to put the pieces of her memory together, to get an idea of how she landed here, and she couldn’t tell whether Mòrag saving her from Malos had been reality or just a wistful dream.

She was harmed, but nothing her powers didn’t fix in the blink of an eye.

Everything had gone batshit after the two artifices had been fighting each other. The ruins they had been fighting at had been destroyed and fallen to the cloud sea… Were the others alright?

“Rex?”, she called out into the empty environment. “Tora? Shellhead?” She paused for a moment. “Mòrag…?”, she eventually called the Ardainian’s name too. She had been there, right? It hadn’t been just a dream. She really had been in danger and Mòrag really had come to her aid – right?

But why?

She had been so furious when Nia saw her the last time… understandably so. Why would she have gone after them?

“I have to find her.”

 

~

 

The pain was almost unbearable. Mòrag moaned while she tried to get on her feet. Her left arm was broken, she could feel it. Her legs were mostly unharmed, thanks to her protective footwear, but she had bruises everywhere. Her chest hurt with every breath she tried to take. A broken rib maybe? She tried to move her upper body and winced. No, probably more than one.

“Brighid?”, her voice came out lower than she intended.

No answer.

 _Guess I have no choice then…,_ she thought and clutched one of her swords with the hand whose arm wasn’t broken.  
She would not die here. She had reacted poorly to Nia’s attempt at coming out with the truth, had sent her away and had said some very ugly words behind Nia’s back, too.

_“Maybe she was afraid of being called an abomination by the very people she trusted.”_

Even though Nia had not been there when Mòrag had said all those things, she still felt deeply ashamed for lashing out like that.

Nia had tried to tell her the truth multiple times, had apologized over and over, but what good was Mòrag’s sympathy if she didn’t know the whole truth? That is why Nia had confessed to being a Flesh Eater. The guilt had been eating her alive. And instead of rewarding her for finding the courage to say the truth and try to come clean, Mòrag had chased her away, because she had been too hurt and upset at the revelation to spend even a second to try and see things from Nia’s perspective.

“I have to find her…”

She would not fall in this place. She would find Nia and resolve this.   
  
Mòrag heard an ominous grunt and turned around, only to be faced with an abomination that looked barely human anymore. Her lips curved into a bitter smile while she readied her weapon. Her enemy had already spotted her and while its movements were slow, she herself wasn’t in a condition to run away either.

She made the first strike and the beast howled. Wherever Brighid was, she was too far away for Mòrag to use her arts. No blue flames, her weapon looked ordinary. She tried to avoid an incoming hit, instinctively turning her torso with the rest of her body and groaned from the pain.

 _Shit_.

It would be next to impossible to fight without hurting herself further in the procress. Only using her legs and right hand to move, while she kept the rest of her posture as it was to avoid the pain? It went against her muscle memory.

The guldo hit her hard and sent her to the ground.

She cried out from the pain and her breathing became faster.  
 _I will not die here.  
_ She just couldn’t. She still had things left to do in this world and she would be damned if she died before that.

If Nia had been here… she would have just patched her up and they would have won without breaking a sweat.  _Nia… Nia, I’m sorry for not understanding your feelings. I’m sorry for sending you away when you needed me the most._ Hot tears pricked the corner of her eyes. Mòrag blinked and clenched her teeth to suppress a painful yell while she got up again.

Somewhere in the corner of her eyes she noticed additional movements. Two more enemies? She gulped, trying hard to not let desperation take over.  
“I will not fall here!”, she announced loud and clear, ignoring the pain in her chest that talking aloud caused her.

 

~

 

Nia was surrounded. These… these things, whatever they were had called more of their kind. Metallic monsters she had never seen before. Were they the product of this ancient civilisation?

She slashed and hit with her sword whenever she found an opening, tried to use water elemental attacks, hoping they’d be more effective – but so far she saw only little success. Some of the machines had stopped moving, but there were still more. Two out of seven. Still five more to go – if none of these bloody things called out even more of their friends. The circle they formed around her grew tighter.

Of all the things she had to encounter down here of course it had to be the one type of enemy her cell growth altering powers were useless against.

 _Heh… it’s like fate doesn’t want me to make it out alive…_ , she thought bitterly. One of those things grazed her and she stepped back, healing the scratch before it could bleed.

At any point in time after Niall’s death she would have accepted such an outcome. She had made a terrible mistake, let him die and hadn’t even been able to tell Mòrag the truth immediately. Living with the guilt had been unbearable at times. Had she found her death in Elpys… she wouldn’t have minded much – it would have been salvation. For someone like her, a healing blade who hadn’t been able to protect those who mattered… it would have been a better outcome she could have ever bargained for.

Now she couldn’t accept that fate.   
There had been a fire in Mòrag’s eyes when their gazes had met in this incredibly short moment – full of determination. Not the hate she had seen flickering back in Mor Ardain.   
Mòrag had willingly protected her and Nia didn’t know whether this meant she wasn’t angry at her anymore or whether she had followed them and it had been just the spur of the moment because she didn’t want to let her friends fight alone against Malos and Jin.

_I can’t die before I find that out._

It was probably too much to hope that Mòrag would forgive her such a thing, but if they could just _talk_ calmly… If Mòrag just listened. It would be more than enough.

“I have better things to do!”, she shouted and readied her scimitar for another water elemental infused attack. Make an opening and run. How hard could that be?

Suddenly something familiar clonked against one of those things and knocked it to the ground. Nia needed a moment to realize that it was Tora’s Drill Shield.

“W-what…?” She just stared, not having expected this turn of events.

“Meh!!! Run!”, Tora’s voice shouted and she saw his round shape, scurrying around and picking up the shield and running off again.

Nia blinked. “Oi! What the bloody hell?!” Was he just gonna leave her and run off again?? She followed him, barely making notice of the fact that he had actually given her the opportunity to break free of this circle of enemies and ran after him as fast as her legs took her.

“Damn, you’re fast on those chubby short legs yours.”, she commented as she collapsed panting on the ground.

They had found shelter beneath one of the fallen over buildings, out of the enemies sight.

Suddenly, there was fur all over her face. “Tora so glad Tora not alone anymore!”

For a moment she just let him hug her and eventually she hugged him back, his soft and warm fur being a great comfort as it reminded her of Dromarch.  
“Thanks for the help…”, she said. Who knew how her battle would have ended if she hadn’t been able to escape?

She pushed him back after that and examined him. “You’re unhurt.”, she noticed.

Tora nodded. “Nopon wings no good for fly, but flap-flap still helped soften fall.”

Nia smiled softly. “I see.” She never thought she’d be so happy to hear his silly Noponese accent.

“Think other friends are alright?”, Tora inquired.

“I… I’m sure. Us blades can handle things, Rex was with Pyra and Shellhead… you know he’s probably seen worse.”, she joked, but then she remembered Mòrag and the smile disappeared from her face. “Mòrag… she was there too, right?”

Tora nodded. “Heroically saved Nia.”, he confirmed.

Nia frowned. “We have to find her.”, she said and stood up again.

“No break?”, Tora asked with a frown.

She scowled at him and the Nopon winced. “If she fell from this height without protection she might be dead!”

Tora examined her with a sad expression. “But Mòrag so strong…”

“She is still just a human, Tora…” Nia lowered her gaze and clenched her fists. “I will never forgive myself if she dies before I can find her.”

Tora silently watched her, looking very unhappy and helpless in that moment. He made a decision and nodded to himself. Then he reached one of his wings out to grasp Nia’s hand and smiled encouragingly when she looked at him.   
“Then no break until we find Mòrag.”, he agreed. “Together everything possible!”

She chuckled at his naïve optimism, but still, it _did_ manage to make her feel better. “Thanks, Tora.” She squeezed the wing that held her hand for a moment and then she let go and together they walked out of their hideout.

Nia had little to go by as to what direction the others could be, but her powers allowed her to sense the ether flow around her and she knew, wherever the ether seemed to be denser she would find a living being. It was not much and her range was limited, but with Tora by her side she was far less afraid of encountering another enemy at least.

So they walked, in a direction where she faintly felt two, maybe three dense points of ether. Could be enemies, could be the others.   
Suddenly, one of the ether flows grew larger and in the distance they saw a lightning bolt, which did not come down from the sky.

“Looks like Zeke attack!” Tora spoke what she had been just thinking.

They nodded at each other and started running.

 

~

 

“Haha, that will teach you to not mess around with Thunderbolt Zeke!”, Zeke laughed triumphantly as the guldo dissipated into ether particles.

“My prince!”, Pandoria called him frantically.

He turned around and saw his blade kneeling down next to someone. That cape and the colour scheme…! His eye widened and he rushed towards the duo.

“Hey, Mòrag! Get a grip!”, he told the barely conscious woman as he kneeled down next to his blade.

The Ardainian empress was pale, her breathing flat and fast. Blood slowly trickled out of her mouth. Dull brown eyes moved towards the duo and a weak smile showed on her lips. “Out of all the people to find me…”, she managed to mumble.

Pandoria cried when she heard her talk. “You’re still alive, thank the Architect!”

Zeke grinned encouragingly. “What’s that supposed to mean? We are the very best people at rescuing the day and others!”

Mòrag chuckled, but it was cut short by a cough and more blood trailing down her lips.

“Can you sit up?”, Zeke asked.

“I… fear not…”, Mòrag closed her eyes tiredly.

Pandoria started to tremble. “Mòrag!”, she called desperately. She wanted to shake the Ardainian awake, but she had a feeling that this would be a bad idea in her state.

“Sh…” Zeke placed his hand on Pandoria’s to calm her down. “She is still breathing.”

“B-but for how long?”

That, Zeke didn’t know. “We need to find Nia or Rex.” He placed his arms beneath Mòrag’s upper body and knees, but Pandoria stopped him before he could lift her from the ground.

“Are you serious?! She must have internal injuries! If we move her…!”

“I know!”, Zeke shouted angrily and his blade stopped mid-sentence. “I know…”, he said again, this time calmer and with an apologetic gaze towards his companion. “But our other option would be to sit around and twiddle our thumbs. Can we really hope that help will find us in time?”

Pandoria looked into her driver’s face, then to Mòrag, who was barley clinging onto life, and back to Zeke. Her eyes were watery and with a heavy heart she finally agreed with a nod.

“Alley-oop.” With those words Zeke finally lifted the hurt woman off the ground.

Mòrag moaned from the pain.

“Hold on, we will find help.”, Pandoria tried to sound as encouragingly as possible. She rubbed Mòrag’s upper arm, but the Ardainian didn’t seem to notice, instead she mumbled something almost inaudible in her delirious state and the blade brought her ear close to Mòrag’s mouth to understand her better:

“N-Nia…”

 

~

 

Tora and Nia spotted silhouettes in the distance. They exhaled with relief when they noticed that those weren’t monsters.  
“It Zeke and Pandoria!”, Tora cheered and made a little dance on the spot.

Nia narrowed her eyes because something seemed off about the way the duo walked. Pandoria was barely watching the road, clinging seemingly upon her driver and Zeke, he… Her eyes widened with shock and she ran off, leaving a very puzzled Tora behind.

The duo noticed Nia approaching before she reached them.

“Nia!!”, Pandora waved at her.

“Guys!” Nia came to a sudden stop in front of them. Immediately, she took a look at the person Zeke was carrying and an alarmed expression showed on her face. She placed a hand on Mòrag’s limp arm and her ether flow told Nia all she needed to know. “What the bloody hell were you thinking?!”, she snapped at Zeke. “Her ribs punctured her lung! Put her on the ground! _Now_!”

Zeke did as he was told. “Jeez, what else did you expect me to do…  Leave her behind?”, he mumbled, but Nia was kneeling down next to Mòrag already, ignoring his ramblings.

“Don’t you dare die on me…!” Nia laid her trembling hands above Mòrag’s body and channelled all ether she could spare towards the woman’s injuries.

Tora popped up next to Zeke and Pandoria, who followed the scene silently and with bated breath.

Already amidst the process Mòrag’s breathing seemed to calm down. When the last glow of ether dissolved she looked better already, less pale and her facial expression was relaxed and free from pain.

Nia was still shaken. “Mòrag…?”, her voice was a high-pitched squeak.  
  
No reply.

Nia leaned a bit closer. “Please… say something.”, she begged. “Tell me I wasn’t too late…!”

A weary sigh escaped the empress’s lips.

When the other three saw this sign of life they exchanged cheerful gazes.

The Ardainian blinked twice, before she could open her eyes properly. She needed a few seconds to realize where she was. Her eyes wandered to Nia and her lips curled into a relieved smile. “Nia…”

“Mòrag…!” Tears were prickling Nia’s eyes. “You’re okay…!”

“Heh… I couldn’t die before I saw you again.”, the Ardainian replied, her voice still only a whisper.

With a trembling hand, Nia stroke a few strands of black hair out of the empress’s face. “Why did you come all the way to the Cliffs of Morytha?” She asked the question that had been weighing so heavily on her mind.

Mòrag placed a hand on Nia’s. “Because I wanted to apologize.”, she confessed.

In the background Zeke and Pandoria exchanged a look and nodded silently to each other. The prince of Tantal then rose from the ground and retreated with his blade to give his friends some clearly needed privacy for this heartfelt moment.  
Tora on the other hand just stayed where he was, following the conversation with his usual facial expression.  
With an annoyed face Zeke went back up to him and grabbed the Nopon by his tuft of hair. “The nerve…!”, he muttered as he pulled Tora like a Nopopomouli off the ground and waltzed back to Pandoria, who was mumbling a very indignant “unbelievable” at their smallest teammate. Tora’s only complaint was a whiny “mehmehmeh”.

Nia’s eyes went wide. “Apologize? But why? I was the one who…”

Mòrag shook her head and squeezed Nia’s hand a little tighter to make her stop talking. “You weren’t the one who killed him.”, she said. “But I behaved as if.”

Nia’s ears drooped. “You had every reason to: I had the means to save him…”, she replied guiltily.

Mòrag closed her eyes tiredly. “I know. It still hurts… knowing that he could have been with us.” Her hand trembled a bit now and Nia realized that her friend was struggling to keep her composure.

The blade herself was close to tears now. “I’m sorry, Mòrag. I really, truly am.”, she said remorsefully.

Hearing the tone in Nia’s voice broke Mòrag’s heart. Nia had already apologized over and over, had shed so many tears over a mistake she could never make right again, probably even more so than Mòrag herself who had tried to push her sadness away instead of facing it, which had eventually resulted in her reacting the poor way she had. She did not want to see Nia suffer any longer. Nia was her precious friend, who had stood with her in so many battles already and who had cried so many tears for her sake…  
“Nia.” Mòrag opened her eyes again and let go of the blade’s hand so that she could reach out to her face. “Come here.”

Nia sniffled and leaned closer. “Yeah?”

Mòrag placed her hand on the back of Nia’s head and pushed her a little closer towards her own face. “Please forgive yourself, Nia.”, she whispered into the Flesh Eater’s ear.

Nia slowly shook her head. “I can’t. I caused you so much pain.”

Mòrag’s lips curved into a pained smile. “You were just too afraid to act and that is only human… even I myself was not above it at times. It is not right of me to blame you for that.”

“Mòrag?”, Nia couldn’t believe her ears and pushed herself a bit back to look Mòrag in the eyes. How could Mòrag still call her a human after everything?

“I have lost a brother already, I don’t want to lose my friend to sadness and guilt too.” Her light brown eyes were gentle, sincere… and kind. “I’m sorry for chasing you away and reacting with anger. I acted selfish and did not stop to think about your feelings because I was hurt.” A single tear ran down her cheek. “Forgive me.”

How could Mòrag still call her a friend after everything? After Nia had let her down so miserably? How come Mòrag was the one asking for forgiveness even though she had endured so much pain already? She couldn’t believe that Mòrag had found it in her heart to be kind and understanding to her, despite everything.

Hot tears streamed down Nia’s face. She broke down over Mòrag’s body and began to weep, too overwhelmed to reply anything anymore.

Mòrag put her arms around Nia’s petite body and held her close and stroke her hair, a gesture that brought comfort to the both of them.

After a while, Nia sobs subsided and she raised her head from Mòrag’s chest to look at her once again. “How can you say any of this after all that’s happened?”

Mòrag’s smile was sad. “I don’t know. I just can’t stand to see you like this.”, she answered and reached a hand out to wipe the tears from Nia’s left cheek.

The blade sniffled and she rubbed the tears from the other side of her face away with the back of her hand.   
“Thank you.” She smiled, and while it was just a little smile, riddled with even more tears she couldn’t stop from falling, it was a genuine one. The first real smile she managed in a really, really long time. Nia hadn’t even known that she was capable of it anymore. Her heart felt light, at last finally free from the burden that had weighed on her ever since she could remember.

Mòrag took her hand back and gave her another smile, this time it was warm and kind, and closed her eyes again. Nia let her rest and stayed kneeled by her side, unable to leave the other woman alone after she almost died, and finally let everything sink in.

Mòrag slept for an hour, maybe two. Nia watched over her and with each passing minute a decision formed in her mind.

When the empress awoke again the group sat together to discuss where to go next. They had to find the others and a way to leave this desolated land of long past. Seeing how the World Tree had its roots down here and how they led up above the cloud sea, they figured that this would be the point everyone would try to reach eventually.

“Well, what are we still waiting for?”, Zeke concluded and stood up. “Let’s roll!”

Everyone else followed his example and Pandoria and Tora were immediately by his sides.  
“Yes, my prince!”, Pandoria said and grabbed onto his arm.  
“Will find others and climb tree!”, Tora shouted optimistically while he did a little dance.  
Now that they weren’t roaming alone and Mòrag was safe their mood had lifted considerably. The trio started walking towards the direction of the World Tree, their cheer looking very out of place amidst the broken streets and buildings.

Nia put a hand on Mòrag’s arm just as the Ardainian was about to follow them.  
Mòrag looked back at her, a puzzled expression on her face.

“Mòrag, I…” Nia let go of the other’s arm and summoned her scimitar in her hands. “I can’t make up for what I didn’t do back then, but… if you would have me… as my driver…” Hesitantly, Nia offered her the weapon.

Mòrag watched the sword thoughtfully until she slowly shook her head. “I cannot accept this.”

“What? But why?” Nia was shocked and hurt.

“Because I don’t want you to be my blade just because you feel obligated to make up for a mistake.”, the Ardainian answered.

Nia blinked, then she smiled. “In that case I should have worded my request differently…”, she said and closed her eyes. “I want to be your shield. I want to protect you and keep you safe, because you are my friend and made me the most generous gift: You lifted a weight off my shoulders that had been placed upon me ever since I was brought into this world.” When she opened her golden eyes again they shone with determination, there were no shadows of guilt or sadness in them. “I choose you as my driver, because you _freed_ me from that guilt, Mòrag.”

Mòrag looked her in the eyes, in those brilliant golden eyes and knew that Nia spoke genuinely. Her decision was a choice, not an obligation – that was all Mòrag wanted to hear. The empress smiled and took the sword by its hilt and gave Nia a nod. “My shield, huh…”, she thought aloud. “I guess the position for Special Inquisitor is unoccupied at the moment.”, she added amusedly.

Nia laughed at the proposition. “Oh, come on, I don’t wanna do all that paperwork.”

“I’m sure you will do just fine.”, Mòrag said encouragingly. She nodded to herself. “Special Inquisitor Nia, it has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?”

Nia smiled defeated. “If you insist, _your majesty_.” She made a little curtsy and offered her hand to Mòrag.

Mòrag took it with the hand that wasn’t holding Nia’s scimitar and together they looked towards the World Tree. A fight awaited them and a fate that was yet unknown, but they stood together now, united at last, feeling stronger than ever before thanks to each other’s presence.

**Author's Note:**

> "Verständnis und Vergebung" means "understanding and forgiveness" in German, which were the two major themes I wanted to incorporate in this piece. Why German? Idk, it was a working title and seemed to ring nicer in my ears than the english words XD
> 
> Ikasury noticed while reading that Nia hadn't given her weapon to Rex in Elpys and suggested she give it to Mòrag and honestly I can't believe I didn't come up with this myself lmao. She also suggested Nia for the Special Inquisitor position~ Otherwise the story would have ended at the paragraph where Nia smiled genuinely for the first time in forever.
> 
> Please let me know what you thought, this took forever to write :D


End file.
